[gillespiefive]

I'm getting a 48 hr. holter put on today, which means....I probably won't feel anything too crazy for the next couple of days!!! So frustrating. I am hoping to have a very small handful of the scary big ones that take my breath away and make me feel woozy, so hopefully they can see if it really is a benign PVC. Owell....here I go!

[dld]

Good Luck!! Go crazy-drink coffee, eat chocolate, exercise. Do everything you would normally avoid. Then get the results and find out all is good. D

[Jeff]

Exactly. Do what dld says.

I've been where you are, and you still don't want to have a serious problem while being monitored, but at the same time, having the monitor can be a stress reliever, making it harder to catch anything "good."

So exercise. Drink coffee. Eat chocolate. Have sex. Do everything that might cause this - otherwise you're back here in 12 months with the same problems, no diagnosis, no chance for understanding the problem or getting treatment.

Please keep us in the loop - let us know how things go, ok?

[jkfrench]

Good luck sweetie! Report back and let us know how it is going! Hopefully in just a few short days you will have piece of mind! Jodie

[gillespiefive]

I'll be done with the monitor tomorrow at 3pm. But this evening, in the past hour I have felt 3 of the HUGE ones that steal the breath out of you and make time stand still. I pray the monitor caught them and that they are not dangerous. I'm a little anxious now!

[Jeff]

But that's good. I know it's as scary as can be, but this is what you really need to have happen. Have the absolute scariest thing caught on the monitor.

And then get it checked. And have it found to be benign. And then breathe. And smile.

[Richard]

Hi Gillespiefive,

It's great that you caught not one or even two but three !!! of the critters that steal the breath out from you (no way can the holter miss them). Has the Dr/Cardiologist ever explained about if the premature beat is very early in the normal rythm of the heart this allows the ventricles to fill with a larger than normal amount of blood and its this that feels so hard and gives the winded/breathless sensation.

Part of the reason we get so confused with the PVC's is because depending on how early or late the ectopic beat is we feel them differently and of varying strength and force.

Add into the mix the various afferent nerve endings that can be stimulated during this forceful beat we can do anything from sweat, involuntary breath holding, produce a zaping sensation to provoking enteric nerves (stomach flipping/butterflies/nervousness). This is all involuntary and is part of our autonomic response. It goes even further than that it can provoke an endocrine response such as 'fight or flight' and the secretion of cortisol

Anyway am envious right now I have never managed to catch one that scares me ... or at least I convince myself I haven't each time I hand a monitor back in

Hope the monitor results are 'all clear' and your part of the benign club.


All the best Richard.